Mobile electronic devices such as smart phones have evolved to include the processing power necessary to perform a wide range of tasks. Users can place telephone calls and send text/email messages, browse the Internet, take digital photographs, play games, watch video and listen to audio, and participate in other activities. Due to this versatility, users rarely travel anywhere without their smart phones and/or and other portable electronic devices.
Such portable electronic devices can be placed in the pocket of the user's clothing. But the portable electronic devices are often not easily and quickly retrievable from a pocket to answer an incoming telephone call or to quickly capture a photograph of a subject that is available for only a very short window of time. And placing the portable electronic device in a pocket can muffle the sound of a ringtone, making it difficult to hear audible alerts to an incoming telephone call and/or message.
More recently, users have been able to purchase a holster that is to be clipped onto an article of clothing worn by the user. Such holsters typically include a sleeve formed from a rigid plastic to receive the portable electronic device. But such holsters are bulky and often uncomfortable to wear when seated, and remain attached to the user's clothing while the portable electronic device is in use. Further, conventional holsters lack utility while the portable electronic device is in use.